The Major Differences between the Exoteric and Esoteric Path of Islam - Essay Example

number Publish The major differences between the exoteric and esoteric path of Islam “Let there be no compulsion in religion.” Quran (2:256) Islam declares itself as a peaceful religion through its various texts and teachings. However, the current form of Islam being projected around the globe relies less on the written and spoken word and more on the use of violent means to pressurize the global community. There have been a number of splinter factions in mainstream Islam over the centuries but the latest split in Islam posits the radical against the moderate. The exoteric path in contemporary Islam is composed of moderates and outnumbers the esoteric path of the radicals but still stands hijacked by nascent Islamic radicalism. Islam is typically perceived as one, whole and uniformly practiced religion but reality belies this simplified disposition. The paths of exoteric and esoteric Islam are well differentiated and this paper seeks to discuss the major differences between both. The largest difference between the exoteric Muslims and the esoteric Muslims is their attitude towards the propagation of religion. The esoteric Muslims see Islam as the ultimate solution for mankind and believe that it their responsibility to enforce Islam around the globe. Such quarters see Islam as the final solution for every problem that mankind faces ranging from emotional problems to population control. Sayyid Qutb, one of the founding fathers of modern radical Islam argues in his text Milestones (Qutb 57): “... annihilate all those political and material powers which stand between people and Islam ...” In contrast, the original teachings of Islam are far more peaceful and refrains the believer from imposing his version of religion on the other person, whether Muslim or non Muslim. The Prophet of Islam was a staunch believer in religious pluralism including within Islamic realms. The Prophet of Islam, Muhammad, has been quoted as saying (Ernst 1045): “Difference of opinion is a mercy for my community.” Additionally, religious pluralism has been favored in the sacred text of Islam, the Quran. The Quran’s second chapter, Al Baqra, declares openly that the believers are not allowed to force other people into their religious fold. Islam has historically relied on preaching through peaceful means including open interaction with non Muslims. The earliest traditions from Islam, including the time when early Muslims were being prosecuted in Makkah, show that forced conversions and the imposition of religious doctrine on other religions was not allowed. The same can be said of the times when the Muslims were in power and had taken control of large swaths of the globe. The reign of Umar is mentionable in this regard. In around a decade Umar was able to expand the Islamic frontiers manifold through armed conflict but again Islam was not imposed on the conquered people (Ahmed 34). Instead, Islam was spread in most of the conquered areas through open interaction with the non Muslims. Even with the existence of evidence to the contrary, today’s radical Islamists are bent upon furthering Islam through violent means. A major problem that Islam faces like other major religions is the loss in translation. Islam was originally revealed in the Arabian Peninsula and the medium of communication and instruction remained Arabic. The Prophet Muhammad was Arab and was not instructed in other languages, so his entire set of instructions for Islam has been preserved in Arabic. Similarly, the Quran was revealed and the scribed in Arabic too. There were initially no problems as to the use of Arabic since the early converts and most of the converts in the Prophet’s own lifetime were Arabs. However, as the Islamic empire began to spread under the Rightly Guided Caliphs, the need for taking up other languages became apparent. It was felt that translating massive works of Quran and Hadith into other languages would abrade the meanings of the original texts. In an effort to preserve the structures of Quran and Hadith, the caliph Usman decided to compile the Quran into Arabic (Burton 213). The compilation of the Quran into Arabic signaled the onset of orthodoxy in relation to religious texts in Islam. There has been a staunch tradition in Islamic communities to recite the Quran and to rote the Ahadith without actually comprehending the meaning of these texts. Translations are typically seen as vernacular deviations from the classical Islamic texts and is hence not encouraged or allowed. Consequently, the modern radical Islamist has been able to issue extremist ideas by using fragmented versions of Islamic texts. Since the average Muslim has little understanding of the classical texts, they tend to rely on community religious leaders for interpretation of religious texts. Most community religious leaders are either known extremists or supporters of radical factions. The penetration of radical Islamists into the religious leadership class in Islam has had the unfortunate consequence of desecrating the original face of Islam. The believers have literally been lost in translation from the classical texts into vernacular languages around the world. Seeking the opportunity, the esoteric classes in contemporary Islam have used classical texts in classical Arabic to brainwash millions into seeing the rest of the world as enemies of Islam and Allah. Radical Islamic scholars such as Sayyid Qutb have declared the rest of the world as enemies of Islam, ready to mislead the believers (Qutb 159): “The Believers must not be deceived, and must understand that this is a trick. The enemy, by changing the nature of the struggle, intends to deprive them of their weapon of true victory ...” The “weapon of true victory” referred to above stems from the Islamic belief that when the world ultimately ends, the Muslims would be closest to God (Allah) given their piety and devotion to promoting God’s religion on Earth (Qutb 159). Comparable to the Jews, the Muslims see themselves as exalted children of God and hence feel that their actions are somehow justified by and ratified by God Himself. The radical Islamic conception that Islam is the only true religion and that Muslims have been chosen by God to promote his religion on Earth, tends to embolden the actions taken by such quarters. The closeness to God tends to promote violent means since radical Muslims believe that the graver the action they commit, the better they will be rewarded in world hereafter and in heaven. The closer connection to God also means that radical Muslims see themselves as agents of Allah in greater favor when compared to the Jews or Christians. Essentially, Judaism, Christianity and Islam are all revealed religions and hence should be connected equally to God but esoteric Islamists see themselves as closer to God (Qutb 113): “... concerning the ultimate aims of Jews and Christians against Muslims ...” The perceived closer connection to God makes acts of violence justifiable for esoteric Islamists. On the other hand, exoteric Islamists denounce acts of violence since Islam only allows violence on the battlefield and nowhere else. There are rich traditions in Islamic conquests where the conquering armies were not allowed to loot, pillage or set fire to the conquered people’s lands. Islamic doctrines concerning the use of violence promote minimal violence in order to resolve conflicts and Ernst (2004) describes Islam’s ethical conduct during conflict in the following words (Ernst 1014): “Since life on this earth will always be subject to conflict, it is essential to have an example of the best ethical conduct of war and politics.” Based on the discussion above, it can be clearly seen that esoteric Islam and exoteric Islam follow completely different paths in respect of the major tenets of Islam and how they are practiced. The esoteric version of Islam sees Islam as the only true religion and is prepared to use any given means, including violent means, to promote rather enforce Islam on people all around the globe. In contrast, exoteric Islam promotes moderate values of peace and tolerance and looks to further Islam using peaceful means such as interaction between Muslims and non Muslims. Works Cited Ahmed, Nazeer. Islam in Global History: From the Death of Prophet Muhammad to the First World War. Washington D. C.: American Institute of Islamic History and Culture, 2001. Burton, John. The Collection of the Qur'an. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1979. Ernst, Carl W. Following Muhammad: rethinking Islam in the contemporary world. The University of North Carolina Press, 2004. Qutb, Sayyid. Milestones. Kazi Publications Inc., 1993. Read More